Manny Situation Getting Ridiculous

It's February.  The Super Bowl is over.  Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow.  And Manny Ramirez is still without a contract. Last night, the Dodgers apparently offered Mr. Manny a one year $25 million contract.  A few hours later, Manny and his agent, Scott "For the Love of the Game" Boras rejected the offer.  Shortly after the season, the Dodgers offered Manny a two year $45 million offer. Where the Andy Pettitte saga was frustrating in it's absurdity, this Manny saga is frustrating in his audacity. You know the story.  Manny dogged his way out of Boston in 2008 after hiring Scott Boras as his new agent in February of that same year.  He first expressed frustration that the Red Sox wouldn't address his option situation ($20 million team option for 2009) in spring training.  Then, unsure of his future with the Red Sox, he and his agent forced the Red Sox to trade Ramirez while simultaneously eliminating the options from his contract, making him a free agent this off-season. The motivations are obviou$.  Boras never met a client he didn't get paid, regardless of how many years may be left on their contract.  Manny was obviously on board, hoping to cash in before his inevitable decline while Boras would from a  hefty multi-year commission. If only Boras had taken a look at the economy before advising his client to not only throw away a possible $20 million salary for 2009, but also whatever reputation he had left.  The tainting of his own reputation has left Manny jobless with a mere few weeks left until spring training, still confident enough that he can turn down a one year deal for $25 million. Manny apparently has one or two suitors at this stage, which makes the Dodger's latest offer truly mind boggling.  Even though the market seems to say that offering Manny a two year deal in the $35 - $40 million range should get it done, you're taking a risk of hiring Unhappy Manny Ramirez.  Unhappy Manny Ramirez may do to you what he did to the Red Sox. Instead,  the Dodgers decided that they would give Manny the money he wants, but put him in a position where he needs to play for another contract.  In essence, the extra money goes towards Manny Insurance, because he can't be depended on to be honorable and perform to the best of his ability unless there is a carrot in front of him.  He's being offered extra money to make sure he plays. That's what it comes to in the Manny situation now, nevermind the fact that it was Manny and Scott Boras who created this situation.  Sure, the economy isn't helping the situation.  The glut of decent veteran outfielders still on the market is evidence of that. But consider how differently this situation might have played out had Manny kept his mouth shut and played the rest of the season in Boston.  Chances are, Boston would not have exercised Manny's option, which would have put him on the free agent market as the best hitter available.  He wouldn't have the fallout from his negative exodus from the Red Sox and probably would have gotten a nice three to four year deal.  Worst case for Manny, the Red Sox pick up his option and he's making $20 million while Bobby Abreu and Adam Dunn are still looking for work. The prevailing thought now is that Manny needs to save face by signing a contract valued above the Boston money he walked away from, while the current economy says that Manny can't be trusted with that kind of financial risk.  There may be no team waiting in the hole for this to play out either, leaving the Dodgers as Manny's only options. It's a shame that one of the greatest hitters you may ever see is in danger of not playing this season over pure greed.  And if he does play, Manny Watch will be in full effect.  It is a level of scrutiny you don't normally see in these situations, but it was created by Manny himself.  He deserves every last moment of this.